Video Voicemail Recording System

ABSTRACT

A video voicemail recording system enables a caller to leave a conventional audio voicemail message over the telephony connection used for routing a call or to leave a message of a different communication modality using a client application at the calling device. A call is routed to a client device from a calling device. In-call options for selection at the calling device are presented responsive to the call going unanswered, in which a first in-call option allows an operator of the calling device to record an audio-only voicemail message over the telephony service and a second in-call option allows the operator of the calling device to record or input a message of a second communication modality (e.g., a video message). A request to open the client application at the calling device is transmitted responsive to a selection of the second in-call option. The message is received in response thereto.

BACKGROUND

Enterprise entities rely upon several modes of communication to supporttheir operations, including telephone, email, internal messaging, andthe like. These separate modes of communication have historically beenimplemented by service providers whose services are not integrated withone another. The disconnect between these services, in at least somecases, requires information to be manually passed by users from oneservice to the next. Furthermore, some services, such as telephonyservices, are traditionally delivered via on-premises solutions, meaningthat remote workers and those who are generally increasingly mobile maybe unable to rely upon them. One solution is by way of a unifiedcommunications as a service (UCaaS) platform, which includes severalcommunications services integrated over a network, such as the Internet,to deliver a complete communication experience regardless of physicallocation.

SUMMARY

Disclosed herein are, inter alia, implementations of video voicemailrecording systems and techniques therefor.

One aspect of this disclosure is a method. The method includes routing acall to a client device from a calling device, presenting in-calloptions for selection at the calling device responsive to the call goingunanswered, transmitting a request to open a client application at thecalling device responsive to a selection of the second in-call option atthe calling device, and storing the video message from the callingdevice responsive to the request for later access using the clientdevice, in which a first in-call option allows an operator of thecalling device to record an audio-only voicemail message for an operatorof the client device and a second in-call option allows the operator ofthe calling device to record a video message for the operator of theclient device.

Another aspect of this disclosure is a system. The system includes aprivate branch exchange (PBX) and a server. The PBX is configured toroute a call to a number over a telephony service as a first servicefrom a calling device to an interactive voice response (IVR) system of aclient device associated with the telephone number responsive to thecall going unanswered. The server is configured to transmit a request toopen a client application at the calling device responsive to aselection of an in-call option of the IVR system at the calling deviceand to store a message associated with a second service received fromthe calling device responsive to the request.

Yet another aspect of this disclosure is an apparatus. The apparatusincludes a memory and a processor configured to execute instructionsstored in the memory to route a communication over a first communicationmodality from a calling device to a client device, present options forselection at the calling device responsive to the communication goingunanswered, cause a client application to open at the calling deviceresponsive to a selection of one of the options at the calling device,and store a message corresponding to a second communication modalityassociated with the selected option from the calling device for lateraccess by the client device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

This disclosure is best understood from the following detaileddescription when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Itis emphasized that, according to common practice, the various featuresof the drawings are not to-scale. On the contrary, the dimensions of thevarious features are arbitrarily expanded or reduced for clarity.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example of an electronic computing andcommunications system.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example internal configuration of acomputing device of an electronic computing and communications system.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an example of a software platformimplemented by an electronic computing and communications system.

FIG. 4A is a block diagram of an example of a video voicemail systemreceiving and processing a call over a first communication modality.

FIG. 4B is a block diagram of an example of a video voicemail systemreceiving and processing a message over a second communication modality.

FIG. 5 is an illustration of swim lanes showing an example sequence ofoperations for video voicemail recording.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of an example of a technique for video voicemailrecording.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Users of a software platform, such as a UCaaS platform, have multiplemodalities available to communicate with one another. In particular,users can call each other using a telephony system service of thesoftware platform and attend audio, video, or other conferences over aconferencing system service of the software platform. In many cases,these modalities are connected or integrated such that a currentcommunication initiated over a first modality (e.g., telephony) may beswitched to and continued at a second modality (e.g., conferencing).This switch may in at least some cases introduce a previouslyinaccessible media channel into the communication, such as where a callis elevated to a video-enabled conference.

Typically, whether or not within the context of a software platform,when a caller attempts to reach someone by phone and that person doesnot answer, the caller is greeted by an audio message which may in somecases be a pre-recorded greeting by that person. The caller then choosesto either leave an audio recording as a voicemail message or toterminate the call without leaving such a message. However, thisapproach does not accommodate or leverage the multi-modal functionalityof a UCaaS platform. For example, limiting a caller to leaving an audiorecording in response to an audio recording, all over a telephone call,prevents that caller from leveraging other modalities for leaving amessage for the person who did not answer a call.

Implementations of this disclosure address problems such as these usinga video voicemail recording system, which, in response to a call goingunanswered, enables a caller to leave a conventional audio voicemailmessage over the same telephony connection as was used for routing thecall or to leave a video message using video capture software opened atthe calling device. In one example, a call for an operator of a clientdevice is received from a calling device. In-call options for selectionat the calling device are presented to the calling device responsive tothe call going unanswered, in which a first in-call option allows anoperator of the calling device to record an audio-only voicemail messagefor the operator of the client device and a second in-call option allowsthe operator of the calling device to record a video message for theoperator of the client device. A request to open video capture softwareat the calling device is then transmitted responsive to a selection ofthe second in-call option at the calling device, and the video messageis received from the calling device responsive to the request.

In one example use case, an operator of a client device, using a videovoicemail recording system as disclosed herein, may configure aninteractive voice response (IVR) system associated with that clientdevice operator to allow a caller, as an operator of a calling device,to leave messages of different types based on selections of ones of thein-call options, as menu options of the IVR system. For example, theoperator of the calling device may be greeted by the IVR system inresponse to his or her call going unanswered, and he or she may then optto press ‘1’ to leave a traditional audio recording as a voicemailmessage or ‘2’ to leave a video recording as a voicemail message. Aselection of ‘2’ may thus cause a client application at the callingdevice to open, such as by the video voicemail recording systemtransmitting a request for the client application, which includes videocapture software, to open at the calling device. The operator of thecalling device may then record a video voicemail message within thatsoftware, which is then transmitted back to a server for later access bythe operator of the client device.

Other example use cases relate to causing a client application runningat the calling device to open to enable an operator of the callingdevice to record or transmit a message over a communication modalitywhich is different from a telephony service. For example, the differentcommunication modality may relate a video capture service, in which casethe message may be a video message recorded using a service configuredfor video capture. In another example, the different communicationmodality may relate to a messaging service, in which case the messagemay be a chat message, an instant message, an email message, or anothermessage transmitted using a messaging service. In some cases, more thantwo options may be presented for selection at a calling device inresponse to a call going unanswered, such as in which each of the morethan two options corresponds to a different communication modality.Thus, although a video voicemail recording system is referenced herein,the video voicemail recording system may facilitate recording orinputting of messages including but not limited to video voicemailmessages, for example, chat messages, instant messages, and emailmessages.

To describe some implementations in greater detail, reference is firstmade to examples of hardware and software structures used to implement avideo voicemail recording system. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of anexample of an electronic computing and communications system 100, whichcan be or include a distributed computing system (e.g., a client-servercomputing system), a cloud computing system, a clustered computingsystem, or the like.

The system 100 includes one or more customers, such as customers 102Athrough 102B, which may each be a public entity, private entity, oranother corporate entity or individual that purchases or otherwise usessoftware services, such as of a UCaaS platform provider. Each customercan include one or more clients. For example, as shown and withoutlimitation, the customer 102A can include clients 104A through 104B, andthe customer 102B can include clients 104C through 104D. A customer caninclude a customer network or domain. For example, and withoutlimitation, the clients 104A through 104B can be associated orcommunicate with a customer network or domain for the customer 102A andthe clients 104C through 104D can be associated or communicate with acustomer network or domain for the customer 102B.

A client, such as one of the clients 104A through 104D, may be orotherwise refer to one or both of a client device or a clientapplication. Where a client is or refers to a client device, the clientcan comprise a computing system, which can include one or more computingdevices, such as a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, anotebook computer, a desktop computer, or another suitable computingdevice or combination of computing devices. Where a client instead is orrefers to a client application, the client can be an instance ofsoftware running on a customer device (e.g., a client device or anotherdevice). In some implementations, a client can be implemented as asingle physical unit or as a combination of physical units. In someimplementations, a single physical unit can include multiple clients.

The system 100 can include a number of customers and/or clients or canhave a configuration of customers or clients different from thatgenerally illustrated in FIG. 1. For example, and without limitation,the system 100 can include hundreds or thousands of customers, and atleast some of the customers can include or be associated with a numberof clients.

The system 100 includes a datacenter 106, which may include one or moreservers. The datacenter 106 can represent a geographic location, whichcan include a facility, where the one or more servers are located. Thesystem 100 can include a number of datacenters and servers or caninclude a configuration of datacenters and servers different from thatgenerally illustrated in FIG. 1. For example, and without limitation,the system 100 can include tens of datacenters, and at least some of thedatacenters can include hundreds or another suitable number of servers.In some implementations, the datacenter 106 can be associated orcommunicate with one or more datacenter networks or domains, which caninclude domains other than the customer domains for the customers 102Athrough 102B.

The datacenter 106 includes servers used for implementing softwareservices of a UCaaS platform. The datacenter 106 as generallyillustrated includes an application server 108, a database server 110,and telephony server 112. The servers 108 through 112 can each be acomputing system, which can include one or more computing devices, suchas a desktop computer, a server computer, or another computer capable ofoperating as a server, or a combination thereof. A suitable number ofeach of the servers 108 through 112 can be implemented at the datacenter106. The UCaaS platform uses a multi-tenant architecture in whichinstallations or instantiations of the servers 108 through 112 is sharedamongst the customers 102A through 102B.

In some implementations, one or more of the servers 108 through 112 canbe a non-hardware server implemented on a physical device, such as ahardware server. In some implementations, a combination of two or moreof the application server 108, the database server 110, and thetelephony server 112 can be implemented as a single hardware server oras a single non-hardware server implemented on a single hardware server.In some implementations, the datacenter 106 can include servers otherthan or in addition to the servers 108 through 112, for example, a mediaserver, a proxy server, or a web server.

The application server 108 runs web-based software services deliverableto a client, such as one of the clients 104A through 104D. As describedabove, the software services may be of a UCaaS platform. For example,the application server 108 can implement all or a portion of a UCaaSplatform, for example, including conferencing software, messagingsoftware, and/or other intra-party or inter-party communicationssoftware. The application server 108 may, for example, be or include aunitary Java Virtual Machine (JVM).

In some implementations, the application server 108 can include anapplication node, which can be a process executed on the applicationserver 108. For example, and without limitation, the application nodecan be executed in order to deliver software services to a client, suchas one of the clients 104A through 104D, as part of a softwareapplication. The application node can be implemented using processingthreads, virtual machine instantiations, or other computing features ofthe application server 108. In some such implementations, theapplication server 108 can include a suitable number of applicationnodes, depending upon a system load or other characteristics associatedwith the application server 108. For example, and without limitation,the application server 108 can include two or more nodes forming a nodecluster. In some such implementations, the application nodes implementedon a single application server 108 can run on different hardwareservers.

The database server 110 stores, manages, or otherwise provides data fordelivering software services of the application server 108 to a client,such as one of the clients 104A through 104D. In particular, thedatabase server 110 may implement one or more databases, tables, orother information sources suitable for use with a software applicationimplemented using the application server 108. The database server 110may include a data storage unit accessible by software executed on theapplication server 108. A database implemented by the database server110 may be a relational database management system (RDBMS), an objectdatabase, an XML database, a configuration management database (CMDB), amanagement information base (MIB), one or more flat files, othersuitable non-transient storage mechanisms, or a combination thereof. Thesystem 100 can include one or more database servers, in which eachdatabase server can include one, two, three, or another suitable numberof databases configured as or comprising a suitable database type orcombination thereof.

In some implementations, one or more databases, tables, other suitableinformation sources, or portions or combinations thereof may be stored,managed, or otherwise provided by one or more of the elements of thesystem 100 other than the database server 110, for example, the client104 or the application server 108.

The telephony server 112 enables network-based telephony and webcommunications from and to clients of a customer, such as the clients104A through 104B for the customer 102A or the clients 104C through 104Dfor the customer 102B. Some or all of the clients 104A through 104D maybe voice over internet protocol (VOIP)-enabled devices configured tosend and receive calls over a network, for example, a network 114. Inparticular, the telephony server 112 includes a session initiationprotocol (SIP) zone and a web zone. The SIP zone enables a client of acustomer, such as the customer 102A or 102B, to send and receive callsover the network 114 using SIP requests and responses. The web zoneintegrates telephony data with the application server 108 to enabletelephony-based traffic access to software services run by theapplication server 108. Given the combined functionality of the SIP zoneand the web zone, the telephony server 112 may be or include acloud-based PBX system.

The SIP zone receives telephony traffic from a client of a customer anddirects same to a destination device. The SIP zone may include one ormore call switches for routing the telephony traffic. For example, toroute a VOIP call from a first VOIP-enabled client of a customer to asecond VOIP-enabled client of the same customer, the telephony server112 may initiate a SIP transaction between a first client and the secondclient using a PBX for the customer. However, in another example, toroute a VOIP call from a VOIP-enabled client of a customer to a clientor non-client device (e.g., a desktop phones which is not configured forVOIP communication) which is not VOIP-enabled, the telephony server 112may initiate a SIP transaction via a VOIP gateway that transmits the SIPsignal to a public switched telephone network (PSTN) system for outboundcommunication to the non-VOIP-enabled client or non-client phone. Hence,the telephony server 112 may include a PSTN system and may in some casesaccess an external PSTN system.

The telephony server 112 includes one or more session border controllers(SBCs) for interfacing the SIP zone with one or more aspects external tothe telephony server 112. In particular, an SBC can act as anintermediary to transmit and receive SIP requests and responses betweenclients or non-client devices of a given customer with clients ornon-client devices external to that customer. When incoming telephonytraffic for delivery to a client of a customer, such as one of theclients 104A through 104D, originating from outside the telephony server112 is received, a SBC receives the traffic and forwards it to a callswitch for routing to the client.

In some implementations, the telephony server 112, via the SIP zone, mayenable one or more forms of peering to a carrier or customer premise.For example, Internet peering to a customer premise may be enabled toease the migration of the customer from a legacy provider to a serviceprovider operating the telephony server 112. In another example, privatepeering to a customer premise may be enabled to leverage a privateconnection terminating at one end at the telephony server 112 and at theother at a computing aspect of the customer environment. In yet anotherexample, carrier peering may be enabled to leverage a connection of apeered carrier to the telephony server 112.

In some such implementations, a SBC or telephony gateway within thecustomer environment may operate as an intermediary between the SBC ofthe telephony server 112 and a PSTN for a peered carrier. When anexternal SBC is first registered with the telephony server 112, a callfrom a client can be routed through the SBC to a load balancer of theSIP zone, which directs the traffic to a call switch of the telephonyserver 112. Thereafter, the SBC may be configured to communicatedirectly with the call switch.

The web zone receives telephony traffic from a client of a customer, viathe SIP zone, and directs same to the application server 108 via one ormore Domain Name System (DNS) resolutions. For example, a first DNSwithin the web zone may process a request received via the SIP zone andthen deliver the processed request to a web service which connects to asecond DNS at or otherwise associated with the application server 108.Once the second DNS resolves the request, it is delivered to thedestination service at the application server 108. The web zone may alsoinclude a database for authenticating access to a software applicationfor telephony traffic processed within the SIP zone, for example, asoftphone.

The clients 104A through 104D communicate with the servers 108 through112 of the datacenter 106 via the network 114. The network 114 can be orinclude, for example, the Internet, a local area network (LAN), a widearea network (WAN), a virtual private network (VPN), or another publicor private means of electronic computer communication capable oftransferring data between a client and one or more servers. In someimplementations, a client can connect to the network 114 via a communalconnection point, link, or path, or using a distinct connection point,link, or path. For example, a connection point, link, or path can bewired, wireless, use other communications technologies, or a combinationthereof.

The network 114, the datacenter 106, or another element, or combinationof elements, of the system 100 can include network hardware such asrouters, switches, other network devices, or combinations thereof. Forexample, the datacenter 106 can include a load balancer 116 for routingtraffic from the network 114 to various servers associated with thedatacenter 106. The load balancer 116 can route, or direct, computingcommunications traffic, such as signals or messages, to respectiveelements of the datacenter 106.

For example, the load balancer 116 can operate as a proxy, or reverseproxy, for a service, such as a service provided to one or more remoteclients, such as one or more of the clients 104A through 104D, by theapplication server 108, the telephony server 112, and/or another server.Routing functions of the load balancer 116 can be configured directly orvia a DNS. The load balancer 116 can coordinate requests from remoteclients and can simplify client access by masking the internalconfiguration of the datacenter 106 from the remote clients.

In some implementations, the load balancer 116 can operate as afirewall, allowing or preventing communications based on configurationsettings. Although the load balancer 116 is depicted in FIG. 1 as beingwithin the datacenter 106, in some implementations, the load balancer116 can instead be located outside of the datacenter 106, for example,when providing global routing for multiple datacenters. In someimplementations, load balancers can be included both within and outsideof the datacenter 106. In some implementations, the load balancer 116can be omitted.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example internal configuration of acomputing device 200 of an electronic computing and communicationssystem, for example, a computing device which implements one or more ofthe client 104, the application server 108, the database server 110, orthe telephony server 112 of the system 100 shown in FIG. 1.

The computing device 200 includes components or units, such as aprocessor 202, a memory 204, a bus 206, a power source 208, peripherals210, a user interface 212, a network interface 214, other suitablecomponents, or a combination thereof. One or more of the memory 204, thepower source 208, the peripherals 210, the user interface 212, or thenetwork interface 214 can communicate with the processor 202 via the bus206.

The processor 202 is a central processing unit, such as amicroprocessor, and can include single or multiple processors havingsingle or multiple processing cores. Alternatively, the processor 202can include another type of device, or multiple devices, now existing orhereafter developed, configured for manipulating or processinginformation. For example, the processor 202 can include multipleprocessors interconnected in one or more manners, including hardwired ornetworked, including wirelessly networked. For example, the operationsof the processor 202 can be distributed across multiple devices or unitsthat can be coupled directly or across a local area or other suitabletype of network. The processor 202 can include a cache, or cache memory,for local storage of operating data or instructions.

The memory 204 includes one or more memory components, which may each bevolatile memory or non-volatile memory. For example, the volatile memoryof the memory 204 can be random access memory (RAM) (e.g., a DRAMmodule, such as DDR SDRAM) or another form of volatile memory. Inanother example, the non-volatile memory of the memory 204 can be a diskdrive, a solid state drive, flash memory, phase-change memory, oranother form of non-volatile memory configured for persistent electronicinformation storage. The memory 204 may also include other types ofdevices, now existing or hereafter developed, configured for storingdata or instructions for processing by the processor 202. In someimplementations, the memory 204 can be distributed across multipledevices. For example, the memory 204 can include network-based memory ormemory in multiple clients or servers performing the operations of thosemultiple devices.

The memory 204 can include data for immediate access by the processor202. For example, the memory 204 can include executable instructions216, application data 218, and an operating system 220. The executableinstructions 216 can include one or more application programs, which canbe loaded or copied, in whole or in part, from non-volatile memory tovolatile memory to be executed by the processor 202. For example, theexecutable instructions 216 can include instructions for performing someor all of the techniques of this disclosure. The application data 218can include user data, database data (e.g., database catalogs ordictionaries), or the like. In some implementations, the applicationdata 218 can include functional programs, such as a web browser, a webserver, a database server, another program, or a combination thereof.The operating system 220 can be, for example, Microsoft Windows®, Mac OSX®, or Linux®, an operating system for a mobile device, such as asmartphone or tablet device; or an operating system for a non-mobiledevice, such as a mainframe computer.

The power source 208 includes a source for providing power to thecomputing device 200. For example, the power source 208 can be aninterface to an external power distribution system. In another example,the power source 208 can be a battery, such as where the computingdevice 200 is a mobile device or is otherwise configured to operateindependently of an external power distribution system. In someimplementations, the computing device 200 may include or otherwise usemultiple power sources. In some such implementations, the power source208 can be a backup battery.

The peripherals 210 includes one or more sensors, detectors, or otherdevices configured for monitoring the computing device 200 or theenvironment around the computing device 200. For example, theperipherals 210 can include a geolocation component, such as a globalpositioning system location unit. In another example, the peripheralscan include a temperature sensor for measuring temperatures ofcomponents of the computing device 200, such as the processor 202. Insome implementations, the computing device 200 can omit the peripherals210.

The user interface 212 includes one or more input interfaces and/oroutput interfaces. An input interface may, for example, be a positionalinput device, such as a mouse, touchpad, touchscreen, or the like; akeyboard; or another suitable human or machine interface device. Anoutput interface may, for example, be a display, such as a liquidcrystal display, a cathode-ray tube, a light emitting diode display, orother suitable display.

The network interface 214 provides a connection or link to a network(e.g., the network 114 shown in FIG. 1). The network interface 214 canbe a wired network interface or a wireless network interface. Thecomputing device 200 can communicate with other devices via the networkinterface 214 using one or more network protocols, such as usingEthernet, transmission control protocol (TCP), internet protocol (IP),power line communication, an IEEE 802.X protocol (e.g., Wi-Fi,Bluetooth, ZigBee, etc.), infrared, visible light, general packet radioservice (GPRS), global system for mobile communications (GSM),code-division multiple access (CDMA), Z-Wave, another protocol, or acombination thereof.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an example of a software platform 300implemented by an electronic computing and communications system, forexample, the system 100 shown in FIG. 1. The software platform 300 is aUCaaS platform accessible by clients of a customer of a UCaaS platformprovider, for example, the clients 104A through 104B of the customer102A or the clients 104C through 104D of the customer 102B shown inFIG. 1. For example, the software platform 300 may be a multi-tenantplatform instantiated using one or more servers at one or moredatacenters including, for example, the application server 108, thedatabase server 110, and the telephony server 112 of the datacenter 106shown in FIG. 1.

The software platform 300 includes software services accessible usingone or more clients. For example, a customer 302, which may, forexample, be the customer 102A, the customer 102B, or another customer,as shown includes four clients—a desk phone 304, a computer 306, amobile device 308, and a shared device 310. The desk phone 304 is adesktop unit configured to at least send and receive calls and includesan input device for receiving a telephone number or extension to dial toand an output device for outputting audio and/or video for a call inprogress. The computer 306 is a desktop, laptop, or tablet computerincluding an input device for receiving some form of user input and anoutput device for outputting information in an audio and/or visualformat. The mobile device 308 is a smartphone, wearable device, or othermobile computing aspect including an input device for receiving someform of user input and an output device for outputting information in anaudio and/or visual format. The desk phone 304, the computer 306, andthe mobile device 308 may generally be considered personal devicesconfigured for use by a single user. The shared device 312 is a deskphone, a computer, a mobile device, or a different device which mayinstead be configured for use by multiple specified or unspecified users

Each of the clients 304 through 310 includes or runs on a computingdevice configured to access at least a portion of the software platform300. In some implementations, the customer 302 may include additionalclients not shown. For example, the customer 302 may include multipleclients of one or more client types (e.g., multiple desk phones,multiple computers, etc.) and/or one or more clients of a client typenot shown in FIG. 3 (e.g., wearable devices, televisions other than asshared devices, or the like). For example, the customer 302 may havetens or hundreds of desk phones, computers, mobile devices, and/orshared devices.

The software services of the software platform 300 generally relate tocommunications tools, but are in no way limited in scope. As shown, thesoftware services of the software platform 300 include telephonysoftware 312, conferencing software 314, messaging software 316, andother software 318. Some or all of the software 312 through 318 usescustomer configurations 320 specific to the customer 302. The customerconfigurations 320 may, for example, be data stored within a database orother data store at a database server, such as the database server 110shown in FIG. 1.

The telephony software 312 enables telephony traffic between ones of theclients 304 through 310 and other telephony-enabled devices, which maybe other ones of the clients 304 through 310, other VOIP-enabled clientsof the customer 302, non-VOIP-enabled devices of the customer 302,VOIP-enabled clients of another customer, non-VOIP-enabled devices ofanother customer, or other VOIP-enabled clients or non-VOIP-enableddevices. Calls sent or received using the telephony software 312 may,for example, be sent or received using the desk phone 304, a softphonerunning on the computer 306, a mobile application running on the mobiledevice 308, or using the shared device 310 where same includes telephonyfeatures.

The telephony software 312 further enables phones which do not include aclient application to connect to other software services of the softwareplatform 300. For example, the telephony software 312 may receive andprocess calls from phones not associated with the customer 302 to routethat telephony traffic to one or more of the conferencing software 314,the messaging software 316, or the other software 318.

The conferencing software 314 enables audio, video, and/or other formsof conferences between multiple participants, such as to facilitate aconference between those participants. In some cases, the participantsmay all be physically present within a single location, for example, aconference room, in which the conferencing software 314 may facilitate aconference between only those participants and using one or more clientswithin the conference room. In some cases, one or more participants maybe physically present within a single location and one or more otherparticipants may be remote, in which the conferencing software 314 mayfacilitate a conference between all of those participants using one ormore clients within the conference room and one or more remote clients.In some cases, the participants may all be remote, in which theconferencing software 314 may facilitate a conference between theparticipants using different clients for the participants. Theconferencing software 314 can include functionality for hosting,presenting scheduling, joining, or otherwise participating in aconference. The conferencing software 314 may further includefunctionality for recording some or all of a conference and/ordocumenting a transcript for the conference.

The messaging software 316 enables instant messaging, unified messaging,and other types of messaging communications between multiple devices,such as to facilitate a chat or like virtual conversation between usersof those devices. The unified messaging functionality of the messagingsoftware 316 may, for example, refer to email messaging which includesvoicemail transcription service delivered in email format.

The other software 318 enables other functionality of the softwareplatform 300. Examples of the other software 318 include, but are notlimited to, device management software, resource provisioning anddeployment software, administrative software, third party integrationsoftware, and the like. In one particular example, the other software318 can include software for video voicemail recording as disclosedherein.

The software 312 through 318 may be implemented using one or moreservers, for example, of a datacenter such as the datacenter 106 shownin FIG. 1. For example, one or more of the software 312 through 318 maybe implemented using an application server, a database server, and/or atelephony server, such as the servers 108 through 112 shown in FIG. 1.In another example, one or more of the software 312 through 318 may beimplemented using servers not shown in FIG. 1, for example, a meetingserver, a web server, or another server. In yet another example, one ormore of the software 312 through 318 may be implemented using one ormore of the servers 108 through 112 and one or more other servers. Thesoftware 312 through 318 may be implemented by different servers or bythe same server.

Features of the software services of the software platform 300 may beintegrated with one another to provide a unified experience for users.For example, the messaging software 316 may include a user interfaceelement configured to initiate a call with another user of the customer302. In another example, the telephony software 312 may includefunctionality for elevating a telephone call to a conference. In yetanother example, the conferencing software 314 may include functionalityfor sending and receiving instant messages between participants and/orother users of the customer 302. In yet another example, theconferencing software 314 may include functionality for file sharingbetween participants and/or other users of the customer 302. In someimplementations, some or all of the software 312 through 318 may becombined into a single software application run on clients of thecustomer, such as one or more of the clients 304-310.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are block diagrams of an example of a video voicemailsystem 400 first receiving a call over a first communication modalityand later receiving a message over a second modality. Referring first toFIG. 4A, a block diagram of an example of the video voicemail system 400receiving and processing a call over a first communication modality isshown. The video voicemail system 400 is intermediary to a callingdevice 402 from which the call is received and a client device 404 towhich the call is routed. The video voicemail system 400 includes aSBC/gateway 406 that receives the call from a phone component 408 of thecalling device, a PBX 410 that routes the call to the client device 404,and a server 412 which implements functionality for causing anapplication 414 running at the calling device 402 to record or transmita message over a second communication modality. For example, the messagemay be a video message, a chat message, an instant message, an emailmessage, or the like.

An operator of the calling device 402 initiates the video voicemailrecording process by a call to a number associated with an operator ofthe client device 404 using the phone component 408. The SBC/gateway 406includes one or more hardware or software components of a telephonysystem (e.g., the telephony server 112 shown in FIG. 1 and/or thetelephony software 312 shown in FIG. 3) that sit at the edge of thetelephony network and operate to connect the call to the PBX 410 fromthe calling device 408 directly or from a PSTN intermediary to thecalling device 402 and the telephony network. The PBX 410 includeshardware and/or software components of the telephony system fordetermining where and how to route the call to the intendeddestination—in this case, the client device 404—based on routing rules,definitions, or like information associated, for example, with acustomer network.

The client device 404 includes an IVR system 416 and a greetingcomponent 418. Responsive to the call going unanswered at the clientdevice 404, the IVR system 416 is used to present one or more in-calloptions for selection at the calling device 402. The call is consideredto go unanswered where an operator of the client device 404 does notaccept the call to initiate a real-time communication over the telephonysystem. The call is considered to go answered where an operator of theclient device 404 accepts the call such that a real-time communicationover the telephony system occurs between an operator of the callingdevice 402 and an operator of the client device 404.

The IVR system 416 may output audio and/or video to the calling device402 to enable selection of one of the in-call options at the callingdevice 402. For example, the IVR system 416 may be a call destinationwhich receives the call from the calling device 402 on behalf of theclient device 404 where the call goes unanswered. In such a case, thein-call options of the IVR system 416 may be presented over the existingtelephony connection through which the call is routed to the clientdeice 404 and thus use audio output. In another example, the call goingunanswered may result in the client application 414 or another softwareaspect at the calling device 402 opening to display video of the IVRsystem 416.

Each of the in-call options corresponds to a different communicationmodality implemented using a service associated with a software platformwhich implements the video voicemail recording system 400, which may,for example, be the software platform 300 shown in FIG. 3. For example,a first in-call option of the IVR system 416 may allow an operator ofthe calling device 402 to record an audio-only voicemail message over atelephony service implemented using the telephony system, and a secondin-call option of the IVR system 416 may allow the operator of thecalling device 402 to record a video message over a video captureservice implemented by a communication system (e.g., a dedicated videocapture system, a conferencing system, or another system) implementedusing the server 412. In another example, a first in-call option of theIVR system 416 may allow an operator of the calling device 402 to recordan audio-only voicemail message over a telephony service implementedusing the telephony system, and a second in-call option of the IVRsystem 416 may allow the operator of the calling device 402 to transmita message over a messaging service implemented by a messaging systemimplemented using the server 412. In some cases, there may be more thantwo in-call options, such as where one in-call option corresponds to thetelephony modality, another in-call option corresponds to the videocapture modality, and still another in-call option corresponds to themessaging modality.

Based on the particular in-call option selected at the calling device402, a greeting is output to the calling device 402 by the greetingcomponent 418. The greeting may be a traditional voicemail greeting thatincludes a pre-recorded or pre-generated audio message. Alternatively,the greeting may be a video voicemail greeting that includes apre-recorded or pre-generated video message or video and audio message.As a further alternative, the greeting may be a pre-written orpre-generated text-based greeting. The particular form of the greetingmay be based on the communication modality associated with the selectedin-call option. For example, the greeting may be a video voicemailgreeting where an in-call option associated with a video capture serviceis selected. In some implementations, the greeting component 418 may beomitted such that there may be no greeting presented to the callingdevice 402 after the selection of the in-call option.

The IVR system 416 and the greeting component 418 are shown as being atthe client device 404. However, in some implementations, the IVR system416 and/or the greeting component 418 may instead be located elsewhere.For example, the IVR system 416 and/or the greeting component 418 may beincluded in the telephony system which includes the SBC/gateway 406 andthe PBC 410. In another example, the IVR system 416 and/or the greetingcomponent 418 may be included in the service associated with secondcommunication modality implemented using the server 412. In someimplementations, the IVR system 416 and/or the greeting component 418may be configurable by the operator of the client device 404.

After the selection of the in-call option at the calling device 402, anotification is transmitted to the server 412, for example, from theclient device 404. The notification includes information configured tocause the server 412 to generate a request and transmit the request tothe calling device 402 to cause the client application 414 to open atthe calling device 402. The client application 414 is a softwareapplication with access to one or more communication modalitiesassociated with services of a software platform. The request transmittedto the calling device 402 may include instructions that, when processedat the calling device 402, causes a processor of the calling device 402to run the client application and connect to a service associated withthe in-call option selected at the calling device 402.

Referring next to FIG. 4B, a block diagram of an example of the videovoicemail system 400 receiving and processing a message over a secondcommunication modality is shown. After the server 412 transmits therequest to open the client application 414 at the calling device 402,the operator of the calling device 402 records or otherwise inputs amessage in the second communication modality to be transmitted to theserver 412 for later access by the operator of the client device 404.For example, recording a message can include using the clientapplication 414 to access a video capture service associated with thesoftware platform to record a video message. In some cases, the messageis recorded at the calling device 402 by the generation of a digitalfile representative of the video message at the calling device 402. Insome cases, the message is recorded at the server 412 using informationcaptured at and transmitted from the calling device 402. In anotherexample, inputting a message can include using the client application414 to access a messaging service associated with the software platformto type a chat message, an instance message, an email message, oranother message, which can then be transmitted to the server 412.

The server 412 receives the message or the information used forgenerating or recording the message, as applicable, from the callingdevice 402. In cases where the server 412 generates or records themessage using information received from the calling device 402, theserver 412 then proceeds to generate or record the message based on thatinformation. The server 412 then stores the message in a messages datastore 420 of the video voicemail recording system 400. The messages datastore 420 is a data store, database, or other repository or storageconfigured to store one or more messages for later access by an operatorof the client device 404. In particular, the operator of the clientdevice 404, through a client application 422 at the client device 404,may later access the message through the server 412 by retrieving themessage from the messages data store 420, such as to listen to, play, orotherwise view the message.

After the server 412 stores the message in the messages data store 420,the server 412 transmits a signal configured to end the call to the PBX410. The PBX 410 forwards the signal to the SBC/gateway 406, whichroutes the signal to the phone component 408 to cause the phonecomponent 408 to end the call. In some implementations, the clientapplication 414 may cause the call to end at the calling device 402. Forexample, the client application 414 may be granted permissions tointeract with other aspects of the calling device 402 such as the phonecomponent 408. The client application 414 may thus use those permissionsto interface with the phone component 408 and cause the phone component408 to end the call.

FIG. 5 is an illustration of swim lanes showing an example sequence ofoperations for video voicemail recording. In particular, the sequence ofoperations are between the calling device 402, the video voicemailrecording system 400, and the client device 404 as all are shown in FIG.4. The sequence of operations begins with at 500 where a communicationis initiated at the calling device 402 over a first modality. At 502,the video voicemail recording system 400 receives the communication andthen routes it to the client device 404. At 504, the communication isunanswered at the client device 404. At 506, responsive to the videovoicemail recording system 400 determining that the communication wentunanswered at the client device 404, options are presented to thecalling device 402. At 508, one of the options is selected at thecalling device 402.

At 510, a modality of a message to be recorded at or otherwisetransmitted from the calling device 402 is determined by the videovoicemail recording system 400 based on the option selected at thecalling device 402. At 512, responsive to the video voicemail recordingsystem 400 determining the message modality, the video voicemailrecording system 400 transmits a request configured to cause a clientapplication to open at the calling device 402 to the calling device 402.

At 514, the client application is opened at the calling device 402responsive to the request from the video voicemail recording system 400,and the operator of the calling device 402 records or transmits amessage over the message modality using the client application. At 516,the message is received at the video voicemail recording system 400,which makes the message accessible to an operator of the client device404. For example, at 518, the message may be accessed using the clientdevice 404.

To further describe some implementations in greater detail, reference isnext made to examples of techniques which may be performed by or using avideo voicemail recording system. FIG. 6 is a flowchart of an example ofa technique 600 for video voicemail recording. The technique 600 can beexecuted using computing devices, such as the systems, hardware, andsoftware described with respect to FIGS. 1-5. The technique 600 can beperformed, for example, by executing a machine-readable program or othercomputer-executable instructions, such as routines, instructions,programs, or other code. The steps, or operations, of the technique 600or another technique, method, process, or algorithm described inconnection with the implementations disclosed herein can be implementeddirectly in hardware, firmware, software executed by hardware,circuitry, or a combination thereof.

For simplicity of explanation, the technique 600 is depicted anddescribed herein as a series of steps or operations. However, the stepsor operations in accordance with this disclosure can occur in variousorders and/or concurrently. Additionally, other steps or operations notpresented and described herein may be used. Furthermore, not allillustrated steps or operations may be required to implement a techniquein accordance with the disclosed subject matter.

At 602, a call from a calling device is routed to a client device. Thecall is a communication over a first communication modality, namely, atelephony service, which may, for example, be associated with a softwareplatform, such as a UCaaS platform.

At 604, a determination is made that the call went unanswered at theclient device. The determination that the call went unanswered at theclient device may be made based on the client device not being used toaccept the call within some amount of time of the call being routed tothe client device, or based on other factors.

At 606, in-call options are presented for selection at the callingdevice. The in-call options are menu options of an IVR system associatedwith the client device. There may be one or more in-call options, inwhich each of the in-call options corresponds to a differentcommunication modality. For example, a first option may correspond to atelephony service as a first communication modality, a second option maycorrespond to a video capture service as a second communicationmodality, and a third option may correspond to a messaging service as athird communication modality.

At 608, a selection of one of the in-call options is received from thecalling device. Receiving the selection of the in-call option includesreceiving a notification indicating the in-call option selected and/orthe communication modality associated with that in-call option.

At 610, a message communication modality is determined based on theselected in-call option. For example, the message communication modalitymay be determined by processing the selection of the in-call option toidentify the message communication modality.

At 612, a request to open a client application at the calling device istransmitted to the calling device. The request includes some informationconfigured to cause the client application to run at the calling deviceto enable an operator of the calling device to use a service associatedwith the message communication modality to record or otherwise input themessage or information representative thereof.

At 614, a message is received from the calling device. Receiving themessage can include receiving the message from the calling device inwhich the message was recorded or generated at the calling device.Alternatively, receiving the message can include receiving informationrepresentative of the message and using that information to record orgenerate the message, such as at a server associated with the messagecommunication modality service.

At 616, the message is stored for later access using the client device.For example, the message may be stored in a data store accessible usinga client application running at the client device, such as through aserver associated with the software platform.

The implementations of this disclosure can be described in terms offunctional block components and various processing operations. Suchfunctional block components can be realized by a number of hardware orsoftware components that perform the specified functions. For example,the disclosed implementations can employ various integrated circuitcomponents (e.g., memory elements, processing elements, logic elements,look-up tables, and the like), which can carry out a variety offunctions under the control of one or more microprocessors or othercontrol devices. Similarly, where the elements of the disclosedimplementations are implemented using software programming or softwareelements, the systems and techniques can be implemented with aprogramming or scripting language, such as C, C++, Java, JavaScript,assembler, or the like, with the various algorithms being implementedwith a combination of data structures, objects, processes, routines, orother programming elements.

Functional aspects can be implemented in algorithms that execute on oneor more processors. Furthermore, the implementations of the systems andtechniques disclosed herein could employ a number of conventionaltechniques for electronics configuration, signal processing or control,data processing, and the like. The words “mechanism” and “component” areused broadly and are not limited to mechanical or physicalimplementations, but can include software routines in conjunction withprocessors, etc. Likewise, the terms “system” or “tool” as used hereinand in the figures, but in any event based on their context, may beunderstood as corresponding to a functional unit implemented usingsoftware, hardware (e.g., an integrated circuit, such as an ASIC), or acombination of software and hardware. In certain contexts, such systemsor mechanisms may be understood to be a processor-implemented softwaresystem or processor-implemented software mechanism that is part of orcallable by an executable program, which may itself be wholly or partlycomposed of such linked systems or mechanisms.

Implementations or portions of implementations of the above disclosurecan take the form of a computer program product accessible from, forexample, a computer-usable or computer-readable medium. Acomputer-usable or computer-readable medium can be a device that can,for example, tangibly contain, store, communicate, or transport aprogram or data structure for use by or in connection with a processor.The medium can be, for example, an electronic, magnetic, optical,electromagnetic, or semiconductor device.

Other suitable mediums are also available. Such computer-usable orcomputer-readable media can be referred to as non-transitory memory ormedia, and can include volatile memory or non-volatile memory that canchange over time. A memory of an apparatus described herein, unlessotherwise specified, does not have to be physically contained by theapparatus, but is one that can be accessed remotely by the apparatus,and does not have to be contiguous with other memory that might bephysically contained by the apparatus.

While the disclosure has been described in connection with certainimplementations, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not to belimited to the disclosed implementations but, on the contrary, isintended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangementsincluded within the scope of the appended claims, which scope is to beaccorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all suchmodifications and equivalent structures as is permitted under the law.

1. A method, comprising: routing a call to a client device from acalling device using telephony software of a unified communications as aservice (UCaaS) software platform; presenting in-call options forselection at the calling device responsive to the call going unanswered,wherein a first in-call option allows an operator of the calling deviceto record an audio-only voicemail message for an operator of the clientdevice and a second in-call option allows the operator of the callingdevice to record a video message for the operator of the client device;transmitting a request to open a client application associated with theUCaaS software platform at the calling device based on a selection ofthe second in-call option at the calling device, wherein the clientapplication enables a recording of the video message at the callingdevice; storing the video message received from the calling deviceresponsive to the request for later access using the client device; andtransmitting a signal configured to end the call based on the storage ofthe video message.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the in-call optionsare presented as menu options of an interactive voice response (IVR)system.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the IVR system is implementedby the telephony software as a first service of the UCaaS softwareplatform, and wherein the request to open the client application at thecalling device is transmitted by a second service of the UCaaS softwareplatform.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein the client applicationenables access to the first service and the second service.
 5. Themethod of claim 3, wherein the in-call options include a third in-calloption that allows an operator of the calling device to transmit amessage over a third service of the UCaaS software platform.
 6. Themethod of claim 2, wherein the IVR system is configurable by theoperator of the client device.
 7. A system, comprising: a private branchexchange configured to route a call to a number over a telephony serviceas a first service of a unified communications as a service (UCaaS)software platform from a calling device to an interactive voice response(IVR) system of a client device associated with the number responsive tothe call going unanswered; and a server configured to: transmit arequest to open a client application associated with the UCaaS softwareplatform at the calling device responsive to a selection of an in-calloption of the IVR system at the calling device; store a messageassociated with a second service of the UCaaS software platform andreceived from the calling device responsive to the request, wherein theclient application enables a recording of the message at the callingdevice; and transmit a signal configured to end the call to the privatebranch exchange based on the storage of the message.
 8. The system ofclaim 7, wherein the second service is a video capture service.
 9. Thesystem of claim 8, wherein a first in-call option of the IVR systemallows an operator of the calling device to record an audio-onlyvoicemail message over the telephony service and a second in-call optionof the IVR system allows the operator of the calling device to record avideo message over the video capture service, and wherein the secondin-call option is the in-call option selected at the calling device. 10.The system of claim 8, wherein the server is a server of the videocapture service.
 11. The system of claim 7, wherein the second serviceis a messaging service.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein a firstin-call option of the IVR system allows an operator of the callingdevice to record an audio-only voicemail message over the telephonyservice and a second in-call option of the IVR system allows theoperator of the calling device to transmit a message over the messagingservice, and wherein the second in-call option is the in-call optionselected at the calling device.
 13. The system of claim 11, wherein theserver is a server of the messaging service.
 14. An apparatus,comprising: a memory; and a processor configured to execute instructionsstored in the memory to: route a communication over a firstcommunication modality of a unified communications as a service (UCaaS)software platform from a calling device to a client device; presentoptions for selection at the calling device responsive to thecommunication going unanswered; cause a client application associatedwith the UCaaS software platform to open at the calling device based ona selection of one of the options at the calling device; store a messagecorresponding to a second communication modality of the UCaaS softwareplatform and associated with the selected option from the calling devicefor later access by the client device, wherein the client applicationenables a recording of the message at the calling device; and cause thecall to end based on the storage of the message.
 15. The apparatus ofclaim 14, wherein the options are presented as menu options of aninteractive voice response (IVR) system.
 16. The apparatus of claim 15,wherein the IVR system is implemented by a first service associated withthe first communication modality and the client application is caused toopen at the calling device based on a request transmitted by a secondservice associated with the second communication modality.
 17. Theapparatus of claim 16, wherein a first option of the options allows anoperator of the calling device to record an audio-only voicemail messageusing the first service and a second option of the options allows theoperator of the calling device to record a video message using thesecond service, and wherein the second option is the one of the optionsselected at the calling device.
 18. The apparatus of claim 17, whereinthe second service is a video capture service.
 19. The apparatus ofclaim 16, wherein a first option of the options allows an operator ofthe calling device to record an audio-only voicemail message using thefirst service and a second option of the options allows the operator ofthe calling device to transmit a message using the second service, andwherein the second option is the one of the options selected at thecalling device.
 20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the secondservice is a messaging service.